Windy City Beat
by Nitro73
Summary: As new recruit Zach Bennet joins the force in dreary Chicago, he soon learns that the only one you can trust is the one selling you your gun.
1. Chapter 1

Windy City Beat

Ch. 1

The biting wind of February whips through the sun kissed buildings as the soft hum of pistons die off. The driver crawls out into the cold as his cheeks redden instantly, grinning at small diner nestled in the alley way. He rearranges the dark framed sunglasses as he makes his way up the short steps. He pushes on the door as it glides open with ease, welcoming him in with the scent of coffee and eggs. "Mr. Bennett?" A middle aged man with a black beard walks up to him, extending his hand. "Roy Coleman."

"Ah yes, Detective Coleman," He grips his hand firmly, "A pleasure to finally meet you."

Coleman smiles at the young man as he leads him back to a booth, scratching his black head of hair. He plops down on the torn booth as he resumes sipping on his coffee, looking up at the man. "So what made you come to Chicago, Mr. Bennet?"

The man removes the sunglasses as he looks back at the detective, "Please, call me Zach," he pulls out a cigarette and gently flick the flint of his lighter, "and as far as my transfer?" He takes a long drag from the cigarette and watches the waitress approach the table, "I just got sick of the suburbs."

Roy chuckled softly as he takes another sip of coffee, "I hear you on that one. You'll soon realize how different the city is compared to traffic stops and marital disputes."

"What are you having?" The old lady scratches her head with the end of the pencil as she stares down at the recruit. He pulls the cigarette away as he looks up at the waitress, "Ill just have a glass of tomato juice." She nods and leans towards Roy, "Still doing alright, hon'?" He nods as he lifts the mug in the air, "Another one, miss." She nods as she walks back to the counter, disappearing in the kitchen. Roy looks over to Zach, smirking. "You sure you can handle it here?"

"I know I can," he places the spent cigarette in the frosted ashtray, "Do you not think so?"

The waitress comes back as she places the drinks on the table, winking over at Roy. "There you are, boys." Roy takes a long sip as he looks back at Zach, "You have an impressive record, but things are different once your in the heart of a city."

The cold air shocks Zach's face as he exits the diner, staring over at Roy. "On to the station?"

Roy smiles over at him as he pulls the collar of his coat over his neck, "Not yet, we have one more stop." Zach lights up another cigarette as he takes a long drag, "Where is that?"

Roy crawls into the driver side of the cruiser, "We need to pick you out a gun."

Zach shrugs as he looks back at his car. Completely remodeled from the ground up, a 1973 Datsun 240Z. He crawls into the small cockpit, quickly releasing the e-brake. "Lead the way..." Roy pulls out of the parking lot, turning out into the cold morning street. Only seconds behind, the roar of the Datsun rumbles down the narrow streets as he tails Roy to wherever he is taking him, only to stop abruptly at a small building. He pulls his glasses down as he reads the sign out loud, "Gun Smith Cats... What the hell is this place?" He revs his engine at Roy, who only grins at him. "Come on, lets pick you out a gun."

The bell chimes as they walk into the wide room filled with all sorts of firearms and ammunition. "Its like a candy store, just more deadly." Zach chuckles as he removes his sunglasses. "Welcome! Anything I can help you gentlemen with?" The soft voice asks, as they both turn their heads. A girl, about 20, stands behind the counter. Her brown hair is pulled up in a ponytail, as she smiles warmly to them. "Oh Roy, what are you doing here?"

"Hey Misty, just bringing in a new recruit." Roy looks back at Zach, who is browsing the wall of 9mm's.

"Oh well I will let Rally know that you are here, I am sure she will be glad to help." She takes a quick look over the young cop as she walks to the back. Roy walks over to Zach as he places a hand on his shoulder, "Odd place, isn't it?" Zach chuckles as he glances over at him, "No, perfectly normal for a gun shop to be run by a 20 something girl."

"She isn't the owner," Roy says as he turns to look behind him. "No," a slender woman walks up to them as she extends her hand, "I'm the owner. Rally Vincent." Zach clasps her hand as he gives it a quick shake, "Zach Bennet," he looks over at Roy, "I'll be working in homicide."

"Roy, you didn't tell me you were getting a rookie! Who ended up leaving?" Rally smiles at Zach as she lets go, adjusting the ear muffs around her neck.

"Charles retired a month ago and we have been short handed ever since," He laughs as he looks over at Zach, "Now we just need to acclimate him to Chicago."

"Well you came to the right place!" Rally smiles at Roy as she glances over to Zach, "Now, what kind of gun were you wanting?"

"I really..." Roy cuts him off before he can answer, "Why don't you let him try a few out." Rally rubs her chin as she looks at them both. "I think I can line a few up." She leads them to the front counter as she crawls behind the glass case. "OK, first we have the Glock 19, standard semi automatic pistol. 15 round clip, lightweight and very trustworthy." She lays the matte black pistol on the counter, dipping back below the counter, "Or would you prefer the Beretta M9? A little more weight, with an extended 17 round clip." The polished gunmetal pistol lies in next as she dips one more time, "Or my personal favorite, the CZ-75. 15 round clip, just the right amount of weight and force." She pulls the third gun out, placing it next in line. "Well... which would you like to try first?"

They walk to the back as Rally carries all three weapons to the shooting range. "I bet having your own shooting range helps drive sales." Zach looks at the 10 booth range, complete with targets and movable tracks. "It is a great place for people to test their weapons before taking them home, that way we know if any extra work is needed." She stops abruptly at the center booth, placing the guns in a row. "Here you are, and also a box of rounds to load them with." She smiles as she steps back with Roy, watching the recruit load the first weapon. "Alright, lets try the Glock..." He ejects the clip and begins to load it up, the soft click of metal on metal fills the quiet range. Rally looks over at Roy as she leans closer to him, "He does know how to shoot a gun, right?"

"I would assume so," He looks over at Zach as he loads the clip, cocking the chamber back, "He looks young, but he has been stationed in Columbus for 5 years." They pull their earmuffs on as he gestures a warning. He pulls the gun up as he lines up his sights, aiming for the floating targets chest. With a few pulls of the trigger he plants the rounds in a circular pattern in the center of the target, moving his aim up towards the head. In a matter of seconds he expels the emptied clip and places the gun on the counter as he looks back at Roy and Rally, "That wasn't too bad."

"Well, I guess that answers that question," Roy chuckles at Rally.

"Impressive, now lets move up to the Beretta."

A new target slides out to the 50 yard mark as he loads the clip into the gun, smiling down at it. With a quick aim, he plants the first five rounds into the center of the head, planting the remainder of the rounds in circle around it.

"Now he is just playing around," Rally gawks at him as she walks up to him. He places the gun on the counter as he starts to pick up the CZ-75. "OK, how do you like them so far?" He pulls his muffs off as he looks over at her, "Good. So far I am leaning towards the Beretta."

"Great choice, now on this one, make sure to keep your right arm straight to absorb the recoil..." She lifts his arm up, locking his elbow, "And make sure your left hand wraps around the base of the gun. This will stabilize it and reduce draw." He smiles softly as he looks over to her, "Thanks... I'll remember that."

"Now fire."

He pulls the trigger as the gun bounces gently, sending a straight shot for the neck of the target. Rally smiles as she lets go of his arm, "Good job, now keep firing." He holds his posture as he empties the clip in the same spot. He places the gun on the counter as he turns around. "Did that answer your questions?" Roy grins as he looks over at Rally, "I thought you did well, as long as you can tell the good guys from the bad."

"You have potential to be a great shot," Rally smiles as she picks up the guns one at a time, ejecting clips and pulling on the chambers for any last shots. "The question is, which do you prefer?"

Zach looks at the row of them as he plants his fingers on the Beretta, "I have to go with this one."

Rally smiles as she leaves it on the counter. "Well, I am a little disappointed you didn't go with the CZ, but not everyone loves them like I do." She leads them back to the register as she places two empty magazines and a holster on the counter. "Is this going to do it Roy?"

"Yeah, how much is the damage?" He looks back at Zach as he places the gun on the counter.

"Lets see, the gun, two magazines, the holster... all together would be $650.00, BUT..." She glances over at Zach, "I'll give him a special and make it the price of the gun."

Zach's eyes widen, "Wow, you really..."

"I insist, and besides," Rally winks, "All of the officers are required to shop and gets repairs only from my store."

"Well, I really appreciate it." Zach smiles as he pulls out his wallet. "Now, how much do I owe you."

Rally follows them out as she looks over at the dark green car, smiling softly. "Nice car, recruit." Zach, still fiddling with his holster looks over at it, then at her. "You like cars?"

"I have been called an enthusiast more than once." She smiles as she looks at Roy. "What year, a 73?"

"Spot on, everything is stock except the engine." Zach grins as he walks over to it, "I'll have to show you sometime."

"I would like that, recruit." Rally smiles as she walks towards the door. "Let me know how the gun is and if it needs adjusting." The door slams behind her as Zach looks over at Roy. "Well, that was unexpected..."

"She may be a woman," Roy crawls back into the driver seat of his cruiser, "But she knows her firearms." Zach gets into the driver side of the Datsun as he watches Roy back up, quickly following him back to the police station.


	2. Chapter 2

Ch. 2

"Hey Roy, whose the kid?"

Roy chuckles softly as he pats Zach on his shoulder, "This is your new partner, Harrington." The blonde haired guy smiles at them as he extends his hand to Zach, "Names Ben, I'll be showing you the ropes around here."

"Nice to meet you," he shakes his hand as he looks at his holstered gun, "Nice Sig Sauer, is it a P220?"

"Yeah," he grins as he moves his arm out of the way, "Nice eye."

"Alright guys, if you need me ill be in my office." Roy walks off as Ben gets off of his desk.

"Alright Zach, looks like we will be spending a lot of time together," He picks up his cheap sport coat, draping it over his shoulder. "Lets hit the street."

The cold air whips through garage as they crawl into the Crown Victoria, filled with the aroma of Vanilla and Marlboro. "How long have you been in town?" Ben glances over at him as he starts the engine. The deep exhaust putters black smoke as he lets the car heat up. "Oh, for about... 7 hours now." Zach grins as he pulls out a cigarette.

"Do you mind?"

Ben glances over at him as he shakes his head, pulling the thick collar of his jacket around his neck. "So have you been in Illinois your whole career?"

"Heh," the scent of singed paper fills the car as he takes a long drag, "No, I started in Columbus. Spent A LOT of time at the campus... stupid fraternities."

"Wow... this is going to be fun." He shifts down to drive as he pulls out of the garage, weaving through the traffic. "We received a hint of an arms deal being made at a local warehouse."

"So are we going to watch?" He takes another drag as he watches the people blur in a streak.

"Yeah, and take this," He pulls out a small camera and tosses it in his lap. "We need positive ID's on anyone involved so we can bring them in."

"Who... me?" He picks up the camera, placing it in a coat pocket. "This will be fun."

"Well, we will be well hidden for this sting. The deal isn't supposed to be going on until midnight tonight." The soft crackle of radio chatter fills the background as Ben turns it down, sighing. "God that gets annoying."

"So what, we are going to stake out for..." Zach glances down at his watch, "Ten hours?"

"That's the plan." He laughs softly as he fidgets through the preset stations.

"Do you think a Police cruiser is the smartest thing to be in?"

"Ah, great question..." The radio stops on a local sports station, as the commentators talk about the Cubs. "God, that was an awful game last night.

"So..." Zach tosses the spent cigarette in the ashtray looking over at Ben, quirking a brow. His hands loosen from the steering wheel as he lets out a loud yawn. "So what?"

"What the hell are we going to do?"

"Don't worry. There is an abandoned apartment that we are going to lay low. The cruiser will be parked two blocks away so no one will see it and get spooked, everything will work out like cake." Zach chuckles softly as he continues to look out the window, watching the buildings. "How long have you been on the force, Ben?"

"I am going on about 15 years now..." He laughs as he looks over at the rookie, "I started about your age and just stuck with it. Nothing quite like the adrenaline you get from helping this city."

The Crown Victoria pulls into the parking lot of a local waffle shop as Ben crawls out of the car. "Alright rookie, we rough it from here." Zach follows his lead as he steps out onto the sidewalk, feeling the harsh Chicago winter pelting his back. He pulls out another cigarette as he lights it up, glancing at Ben. "Lead on, partner..."

The door bell chimes as Rally looks up from the glass counter, "Can I help you?"

The short, slender brunette walks in as she pushes up the round frame of her glasses.

"Oh, hi Becky..."

"Just hello to your friendly informant?" Becky grins as she walks to the counter, gliding a manilla folder towards Rally.

"Whats this?" Rally picks up the folder as she begins to thumb through it.

"Oh nothing, just the largest gun smuggler in the Chicago city limits."

"Oh Becky, you never seize to amaze me!" Rally thumbs to a picture with a name sprawled under it, "Max Weiss? Never heard of him..."

"Precisely!" Becky winks as she leans over the counter, "He covers all of his tracks and all transactions. But I was able to out smart him!"

"So my question for you is, how much is he worth?" Rally quirks a brow as she closes the folder.

"We should go talk in the back..." Becky smiles as she walks off.

"HOW MUCH!" Rally places her hands on Becky's shoulders.

"You heard me, $2,000,000.00... easily." She pushes Rally away as she crosses her legs in accomplishment, "And the best news is I know where you can catch him."

"Whats the catch?" Rally smiles to Becky as she crosses her arms, "If you have put this much effort into this WITHOUT my knowledge, there has to be something on the line."

"Nothing large, just a fraction of the money for my years of hard work..." Becky clears the dusty lenses of her glasses as she looks up at Rally. "Say, $500,000.00?"

"Before we jump to price, why don't you tell me _HOW_ you stumbled across this tidbit of information." Rally keeps her arms crossed as she glares at Becky.

"OK... I have been called in to help the cops find any info on the recent surge in gun running in the city," She puts her glasses back on as she looks to the floor, "The mob has been flexing their new armaments to push off the smaller gangs to own the city..."

"So you have been helping Roy. Does he know about you coming here?"

"Not necessarily..." Becky smiles sheepishly, "But he never said I couldn't"

"OK Becky," Rally uncrosses her arms, "When and Where?"


	3. Chapter 3

Ch. 3

The clacking of train tracks rattle the apartment complex as Zach stares at the wall, "This is a good spot to not be noticed..." He glances over at Ben who is manning the binoculars. "How did you hear about a deal going down tonight anyways?"

"An informant..." He gazes out the window intently, "We don't have too much longer..."

"How do you know?" Zach walks towards the window, gazing across the street.

"They apparently meet around 9:00 for their deal, and its 8:45."

Zach sighs as he pulls out his cigarettes, noticing the empty pack. "Crap, I'm going to run to the shop on the corner. Need anything?"

"Nah, but don't take long..." Ben remains still as he watches the entrance of the building. Zach smiles as he tosses the pack on the floor, "Alright, I'll be quick."

He walks down the narrow stairwell as he pushes the sturdy door open, watching the stream of traffic move slowly across the street. The stench of sewage and exhaust swirl across the street as he makes his way down the sidewalk. "Hopefully this won't be just another boring stakeout..." His eyes slowly catch a sapphire streak drive by as it pulls into the parking lot next to the store at the down the street. "Now there's something you don't see everyday..." He approaches the entrance as he pushes the door open, making his way to the cooler. "Excuse me, you wouldn't happen to have any battery chargers would you?"

Zach's ears perk as he grabs a bottle of coke, glancing to the front of the store. "Why does that voice sound familiar..." His eyes finally notice the slender frame. She leans over the counter top as her light brown hair bounces in a ponytail. The shop owner points to the corner of the store as she turns her head, meeting the detective's gaze. "Oh, hi you!"

"Hey! Misty was it?"

She walks over to him, smiling sweetly. "Yeah, what are you doing over here?"

Zach chuckles as he scratches his head, thinking of a lie. "Well, this is my beat now... was that your car that drove by?"

Misty laughs uncomfortably as she looks out the window, "Oh, no... that's just my friend."

"Oh, I see..." Zach clears his throat as he smiles at her, "Well it was nice seeing you!" He moves past her as he walks up to the counter.

"Yeah, I'll see you around..." She sighs to herself as she walks to the back of the store, browsing the small battery section.

"This and a pack of Lucky's please..." The man nods as he tosses the soft pack of cigarettes on the counter. "$6.50 please."

The detective tosses the money on the counter as he places the cigarettes in his coat, taking one final look at Misty. "Damn, already has a boyfriend..."

His eyes glare over to the parking lot as he notices the car in all of its glory. "That's one hell of a car though." He takes in the Shelby Cobra as he reads the lettering on the side, "A GT500 even..." The sweet smell of tobacco fills the air, enjoying the sight of the beautiful piece of machinery. "Odd, no driver." He turns around, taking a quick drag. "Its getting close..."

He presses toward the apartment complex as the roar of engines fly pass him. Three large black Land Rovers haul into the warehouse as they disappear into the building. Another puff of smoke escapes his lips as he looks back at the apartment, gritting his teeth. "I have to get those pictures..." With camera in hand, he glances at the large warehouse. "Good, now lets see those weapons..."


End file.
